VICTORIA needs a rail freight authority, says BILL RUSSELL
Victoria's intrastate rail freight industry continues to be in a parlous condition, with declining traffic in key areas.
The Victorian Government deserves credit for the positive planning and investment that has taken place, but the rail share keeps falling.
Rail's share of grain freight has fallen from 90 per cent in 2001-02 to 35 per cent in 2007-8. Meanwhile, non-grain rail freight has fallen by 40 per cent a year during the past four years.
These are very serious declines, with multiple causes.
There have been bad seasons for primary producers and vigorous competition from road freight.
In Victoria there's also been the neglect of maintenance by the private rail operator before buy-back of the track in 2007, the speed restrictions as low as 20km/h on some lines pending rehabilitation and disruptions associated with the rehabilitation.
Intrastate rail freight in Victoria has also declined for want of a spearhead body that would put together a considered strategy for rail freight's return.
The body would advocate to government the investments needed in level crossings, in rolling stock and in the reservation of rights of way for future key rail corridors, such as that to the Port of Hastings.
The Victorian Government has statutory bodies to provide leadership in at least six other transport related areas - VicRoads, VicTrack, V/Line, WestLink, the Transport Ticketing Authority and the Port of Melbourne.
Why is there no counterpart for rail freight?
Constant contact is needed with grower organisations, freight forwarders, regional municipalities and business generally as to what user needs are.
There must be a capacity to link this to decisions on infrastructure.
The private operators can only do this to a limited degree.
They work within a rail infrastructure owned, maintained and regulated by government. .
Without a body to link the needs of rail freight users to the investment and planning decisions of government, rail will always lose out. We don't want to lose the contribution of rail.
The rail freight industry has no spearhead, no spokesman, no strategic or urban planning capacity and next to no influence.
Critical decisions are being made without consideration of rail's role.
We need to create a Victorian Rail Freight Authority. It would be good to see this in the Government's coming regional statement.
- Prof Bill Russell is deputy director of the Australasian Centre for the Governance and Management of Urban Transport at University of Melbourne.
